We know how to keep a house clean. From porch swings to church pews, we take pride in our spaces. But, there’s one thing most folks don’t realize when they’re tidyin’ up the kitchen or wipin’ down the Sunday school table: your disinfectant needs time to actually work.
It’s called “contact time”, and it ain’t a football term. It just means your cleaner needs to sit on that surface wet for a certain number of minutes to kill all the germs, bacteria, and viruses it says it will. If you spray it and wipe it right off like you’re chasin’ a fly, well, you just gave the germs a light rinse and sent ‘em on their merry way.
Take Lysol spray, for example. It needs a whole 10 minutes to do its job. Yep, 10. Clorox wipes?
They need to stay on there 4 minutes. Even your old-fashioned bleach mix needs a full minute to disinfect right. That’s longer than most folks give it while they’re chattin’ on the phone or rushin’ off to whichever chore.
Julie Keefer APRN, she has worked with clinics ‘round here, says this is one of the biggest mistakes people make.
“You’re cleanin’, not disinfectin’, if you don’t let it sit,” she says. Let me tell you, there’s a big ol’ difference.
We’ve got plenty of shared spaces: church kitchens, school cafeterias, breakroom tables. If we’re not lettin’ these products do what they’re made to do, we’re just movin’ germs around with a nice lemon scent.
So here’s what you can do:
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Read the label. It’ll tell you how long to let it sit.
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Use enough to keep it wet. Don’t skimp!
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Set a timer if you’ve got to. Go fold some laundry or catch up on the news.
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Let it air dry if the label says that’s okay.
It don’t take fancy tools or big city science to get this right. Just a little patience and the good sense the Lord gave ya. Remember: clean don’t always mean safe, but lettin’ that spray sit a spell sure does help.
So next time you’re cleanin’ up after supper or wipin’ down the church nursery, slow down just a tad. Let that disinfectant do its job, and we’ll all be healthier for it.
